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Stuff Between Some Cake Layers

Carlos Osorio/Associated PressLech Walesa, the former Polish president and founder of Solidarity, speaking to autoworkers this week in Detroit.

Administrivial Tournament/Will Shortz-Spotting Alert! If you live near Providence, Rhode Island and would like to enjoy some fresh puzzles constructed by the amazing minds of the Brown University Puzzle Club, constructors Natan Last, Aimee Lucido, Jonah Kagan, Joey Weissbrot, and Zoe Wheeler invite one and all to their Brown Annual Crossword Tournament, hosted by Will Shortz and being held tomorrow on campus in a building called LIST. The tournament runs from noon to 3:00 p.m., and the tournament puzzles will run at a later date here in The New York Times.

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SATURDAY’S PUZZLE — Nice, and a tad on the easy side for a Saturday, which is good because this is the point in the week where I get discouraged easily. Plus, any puzzle that opens with CHOCOLATE MOUSSE is O.K. by me.

Gary J. Whitehead is back with a terrific puzzle held together not only by the three triple stacks, but by the science-fiction film “THIS ISLAND EARTH” running down through the center. I struggled at the bottom of the grid, but I must say that I thought all of the 15-letter entries rocked in a TAKE NO PRISONERS kind of way.

Even the crossing three-letter entries were, for the most part, decent fill. My personal favorite was N.R.A. for “Grp. with a piece plan?” I’m not a fan of the N.R.A., but you’ve got to love the wordplay.

I always plunk down SEALY whenever there is a mattress clue — I have been brainwashed by their commercials — but I will MAKE A MENTAL NOTE that SERTA is a viable alternative.

An OASIS is a desert “Refreshment site,” to some, but for me they are a very talented band from the 1990s:

Your thoughts?

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Welcome to our conversation about word games. Here you'll find a new blog post for each day's crossword plus a bonus post for the Variety puzzle. Along with discussion about the day's challenge, you'll get backstage insights about puzzlemaking and occasional notes from The Times's puzzlemaster, Will Shortz.

Deb Amlen is a humorist and puzzle constructor whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Onion and Bust Magazine. Her books, “It's Not P.M.S., It's You” and “Create Your Life Lists” are available where all fine literature is sold.

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About Numberplay, the Puzzle Suite For Math Lovers of All Ages

Numberplay is a puzzle suite that will be presented in Wordplay every Monday. The puzzles, which are inspired by many sources and are reported by Gary Antonick, are generally mathematical or logical problems, with occasional forays into physics and other branches of science. While written for adults, many of the concepts here are suitable for and can be enjoyed by math students of all ages.

Gary Antonick, who has created or edited over 100 logic and math puzzles for The New York Times, secretly believes every math problem can be solved using circles and straight lines. He is a visiting scholar at Stanford University, where he studies mathematical problem solving.

Recent Posts

Try these Olympics-themed puzzles from Po-Shen Loh, team lead for Team U.S.A, winner of this year’s International Mathematical Olympiad. Also — If you could train with the best, would you? Perspectives from Olympians Gwen Jorgensen and Clark Burckle. Read more…